Club car pampers NJT riders
Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-Chief
The Jersey Shore Commuters Club railcar looks like any other single-level NJ Transit railcar, but the similarity ends inside. Instead of sitting on flat-backed three- and two-seaters with limited leg room, riders are treated to reclining seats, drop-down snack tables, room to stretch out and card tables that can seat eight.
The amenities come at an extra cost, but it’s not as pricey as people may think for a guaranteed seat and some civility, said Bill Vantuono, who boards the car in Manasquan and is club president. (Note: Bill Vantuono is the editor of Railway Age.)
"There is a huge difference in the comfort level. We have 24 reclining Amtrak seats with drop-down tables and two full-sized work tables," he said of the railcar that the club paid to have upgraded when it was rebuilt in 2003.
A recently signed contract with NJ Transit will ensure that the car, one of two remaining commuter club cars left in the nation, will keep riding the rails at least through the end of 2014. The other remaining commuter club runs on the Metra system in Chicago, Vantuono said.
As evidence of how things have changed aboard the club car, card games have given way to laptops and other tools of multitasking on the two large tables. Gone also are refrigerators and bars that the club and parlor cars featured 30 years ago.
"In its heyday, the North Jersey Coast Line had several commuter clubs: the Jersey Coast, the Jersey Shore Commuter Club and one that was all women," Vantuono said.
A railcar used by and named for the Jersey Coast club is preserved in Morris County, which also was once home to a commuter club car that ran on the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western to and from Dover.
"The reason we’re still around is we never owned our equipment. We lease it from the railroad, as long as NJ Transit is willing to accommodate us," Vantuono said. "They’ve been very gracious and generous and gone out of their way to accommodate us to keep it going."
The club paid $27,000 for the added amenities and upgrades to car 5459 when it was rebuilt along with its sister Comet II coaches in 2003, according to the club’s Website, www.jerseyshorecommutersclub.com.
Under the contract that expires at the end of 2014, the club is responsible for covering operating costs and is considered like any other group that charters transportation from NJ Transit. The club pays a $36,000 annual rental fee, which is paid monthly.
"We are not subsidizing the service and, like any other charter, the club must cover the revenue we would otherwise receive from opening that portion of the club car to the public," said Dan Stessel, NJ Transit spokesman.
Despite its exclusive sounding name, the club and the car are open to anyone willing to pay for the extra comfort. The club car runs on train 2304 in the morning, which leaves Bay Head at 6:05 a.m.; on that run, the car is next to the locomotive on the rear of the train. In the evening, it leaves Hoboken at 5:46 p.m., with the car on the front of the train. It makes a New York connection at Penn Station Newark at 6:08 p.m.
"People have a perception we’re ultra-exclusive and expensive to ride or a closed club," Vantuono said. "It’s a comfortable community. We have an open-door policy. Anyone can try it for a ride."
Club membership does not include NJ Transit fare, which also must be paid. A full annual round-trip membership is $1,200, an annual one-way membership is $750, quarterly round-trip is $350, monthly round-trip is $125 and a 10-trip membership is $50.
The club car returned to its historical route between the Shore and the Hudson County waterfront in November 2009, when NJ Transit deployed multi-level cars on New York-bound trains. The 5459 was moved to a Bay Head-to-Hoboken route, which was a throwback to the Pennsylvania Railroad days when the club car was part of the Broker, which ran between Bay Head and Jersey City, until the railroad closed the Exchange Place station on the waterfront, Vantuono said.
"Since it goes to Hoboken, it’s convenient to the financial district, by ferry or PATH train or Hudson-Bergen Light Rail," he said. "A lot of financial people find it comfortable and convenient."
